Milbourne James and information discipline

The scenario uses a serious Christmas car accident to incapacitate Beatty for the five or six months before Jutland, followed by a Sturdee-led staff reorganization. Sturdee would probably keep some existing staff for continuity while replacing Beatty's flag lieutenant and flag captain with officers he already trusted. Commander William Milbourne James matters because he had served in the Naval Intelligence Division, later worked under Reginald Hall, and understood the value of checking where information came from and where it had to go. His career in intelligence, gunnery, naval education, fleet command, and Second World War information work makes him a different kind of senior staff officer from a purely traditional flag lieutenant. Senior officers should supervise information flow instead of leaving a vital function to an unsupported junior and blaming that officer afterward.